Reduced weight live poultry hauling system

Abstract

A reduced-weight poultry cage is used in conjunction with a reduced-weight trailer to transport live poultry for maximizing the poundage of poultry being transported while reducing the number of trips and fuel expenses. The poultry cage includes a combination of aluminum and plastic elements that reduce cage weight, provide for nesting of cages in stacks as well as easy replacement of failed parts. Furthermore, a drop-deck aluminum trailer with a reduced floor and guide rail alignment stops allows for a durable yet lightweight trailer that can haul a plurality of stacks of these poultry cages, thereby maximizing cubic feet availability while being compliant with various road and bridge laws.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A reduced weight poultry cage, said cage comprising:
 an aluminum frame formed by a plurality of vertical members coupled to a base and each vertical member comprising a stack of floor supports; 
 a plurality of aluminum floor layers, each of said aluminum floor layers being supported on a corresponding set of floor supports at a common elevation, each of said floor layers being continuous from one side of said cage to an opposite side of said cage and from a front side of said cage to a back side of said cage; 
 a plurality of panels that are coupled between adjacent or opposite floor supports at a common elevation on a corresponding floor layer to form a plurality of poultry compartments; and 
 a respective compartment door positioned at one side of each poultry compartment on a common side of said cage. 
 
     
     
       2. The reduced weight poultry cage of  claim 1  wherein one of said plurality of aluminum floor layers forms a poultry cage roof. 
     
     
       3. The reduced weight poultry cage of  claim 1  further comprising alignment stops at said base on opposite sides of said cage and respective mating alignment stops on top edges of said opposite sides of said cage, said alignment stops and said mating alignment stops permitting two reduced weight poultry cages to be aligned when stacked on top of one another. 
     
     
       4. The reduced weight poultry cage of  claim 3  wherein said alignment stop alignment member corresponds to a mating alignment stop on a trailer for carrying said cage. 
     
     
       5. The reduced weight poultry cage of  claim 1  wherein each of said compartment doors comprises a magnetic coupling with said aluminum frame for maintaining said doors in a closed condition. 
     
     
       6. The reduced weight poultry cage of  claim 1  wherein said base comprises a pair of forklift tine sleeves for receiving corresponding forklift tines for manipulating said poultry cage. 
     
     
       7. The reduced weight poultry cage of  claim 1  wherein a predetermined number of floor supports comprise a magnet for magnetically coupling with a portion of an adjacently-located door to maintain said adjacently-located door in a closed position. 
     
     
       8. The reduced weight poultry cage of  claim 7  wherein a second predetermined number of floor supports comprises two magnets, one on each side of said floor support for magnetically coupling with respective portions of two doors located on each side of said floor support for maintaining said two doors in a closed position. 
     
     
       9. The reduced weight poultry cage of  claim 2  wherein components of said aluminum frame are coupled together with fasteners. 
     
     
       10. The reduced weight poultry cage of  claim 1  wherein each of said floor supports comprises plugs on a lower end, said plugs passing through apertures in an aluminum floor layer positioned at said lower end and wherein said plugs are received into an upper edge of another floor support located beneath said aluminum floor layer. 
     
     
       11. An integrated system for conveying live poultry in cages on a trailer and optimized to maximize payload while minimizing cage and trailer weight, said system comprising:
 a reduced weight poultry cage comprising:
 an aluminum frame formed by a plurality of vertical members coupled to a base and each vertical member comprising a stack of floor supports; 
 a plurality of aluminum flooring layers, each of said aluminum floor layers being supported on a corresponding set of floor supports at a common elevation, each of said floor layers being continuous from one side of said cage to an opposite side of said cage and from a front side of said cage to a back side of said cage; 
 a plurality of panels that are coupled between adjacent or opposite floor supports at a common elevation on a corresponding floor layer to form a plurality of poultry compartments; and 
 a respective compartment door positioned at one side of each poultry compartment on a common side of said cage; and 
 
 a reduced weight trailer for hauling at least one of said reduced weight poultry cages, said trailer comprising:
 a plurality of aluminum main beams arranged longitudinally along the length of the trailer; 
 a frame structure formed from a pair of aluminum guide rails coupled together via a plurality of aluminum cross members, said frame structure coupled to said main beams; and 
 a suspension assembly located at a rear portion of said trailer for supporting said frame structure and said plurality of aluminum main beams upon a plurality of wheel axle assemblies. 
 
 
     
     
       12. The integrated system of  claim 11  wherein said trailer further comprises a floor secured only to a middle region of said frame structure along the length of the trailer. 
     
     
       13. The reduced weight poultry cage of  claim 1  wherein said plurality of panels comprise polymer panels. 
     
     
       14. The reduced weight poultry cage of  claim 9  comprising modular elements that can be replaced via the use of said fasteners, said modular elements including said frame and vertical members, said floor supports, said panels, said floor layers and said compartment door. 
     
     
       15. The integrated system of  claim 11  wherein said plurality of panels comprise polymer panels. 
     
     
       16. The integrated system of  claim 11  wherein components of said aluminum frame are coupled together with fasteners and wherein said reduced weight poultry cage comprises modular elements that can be replaced via the use of said fasteners, said modular elements including said aluminum frame and said vertical members, said floor supports, said panels, said floor layers and said compartment door.